Knockdown repeating lever action rifle



N 1966 w. H. B. SMITH KNOCKDOVQN REPEA TING LEVER ACTION RIFLE 4 SheetS-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 23, 1964 INVI-ENTOR.

WALTER H.B. SMITH, Deceased. By ALICE DENHOFF,Execuhix BY W (A- if J A 2E. n v r w W N Q mm uh a 2 NM w,

ATTORNEY Nov. 29, 1966 w. H. B. SMITH xnocxnov'm REPEATING LEVER ACTIONRIFLE Filed Sept. 25, 1964 4 SheetS-Sheet 2 INVENTOR WALTER H. B. SMITH,Deceased. ALICE DENHOFF, Execuirix ATTO NEY aviwmlwr a. Q

Nov. 29, 1966 w. H. B. SMITH 3,287,342

KNOGKDOWN REPEATING LEVER ACTION RIFLE Filed Sept. 23, 1964 4Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR WALTER H. B. SMITH, Deceased. 'By ALICEDENHoFflExecufirix BY 6614mm 4 5 1;?

ATTORNEY Nov. 29, 1966 w. H B. SMITH KNOCKDOWN REPEATING LEVER ACTIONRIFLE Filed Sept. 25, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR. WALTER H.B. SMITH,Deceased. By ALICE DENHOFF,Executrix MW 4.

ATTO NEY United States Fatent ()fiflce 3,287,842 Patented Nov. 29, 19663,287,842 KNOCKDOWN REPEATING LEVER ACTION RIFLE Walter H. B. Smith,deceased, late of New York, N.Y., by Alice Denhoif, executrix, 150 W.58th St., New York,

Filed Sept. 23,1964, Ser. No. 399,131 7 Claims. (CI. 4216) about thepivotal axis of the leverin order to retract the bolt from, and projectit into the breech structure. Such a large angular traverse of the leverdelays the rapidity of loading and firing and tends to cause clumsinessin operation. In such rifles the receiver is of such construction thatit is diflicult to attain access to the action for purposes ofinspection, lubrication and replacement of parts and the like.

A major object of the present invention is to provide a knockdown, leveraction rifle characterized by a relatively small angle of traverse ofthe lever for loading and firing operations.

Another object of the invention is to provide a rifle of the typedescribed which is characterized by very effective action embodying aminimum of components.

A further object of the invention is to provide a receiver for aknockdown type rifle which is so designed as to make the entire actionreadily available for inspection or repair.

Yet another object of the invention is 'to provide an action in a levertype rifle which is characterized by great simplicity and highmechanical advantage for operation of the bolt.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a knockdown typelever action rifle in which barrels of selected different lengths mayreadily be assembled in the receiver.

Another object of the invention is to devise a lever type rifle whichmay readily be disassembled for transportation and/or storage.

A further object is to devise a rifle of the type described which is sodesigned as to permit ready visual inspection and fitting.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a lever action typerifle in which the breech is readily opened to expose and makeaccessible all working frame parts of the action.

A further object of the invention is to provide a lever action riflehaving a straight line movement of the firing mechanism.

The above and collateral objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent upon consideration of the followingdetailed description of a specific embodiment thereof, when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of the rifle of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the receiver portion of the rifleillustrating the small degree of operative movement of the lever;

FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6 are similar longitudinal sectional views of theaction mechanism in different phases of the loading and firingoperations;

FIGS. 7 and 8 are enlarged detail views illustrating the action of thetrigger safety mechanism;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 9-9 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 1010 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 11 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on line 111l. of FIG. 6;and

FIG. 12 is an exposed perspective view. of the novel breech framestructure and the components of the associated action.

Referring particularly to FIGURES 1, 2 and 6 of the drawings it will beseen that the improved lever action rifle of the invention comprises abreech frame or receiver, designated generally at 1, in which the novelaction mechanism is assembled, a barrel 2 detachably secured to thebreech frame and a supporting stock 3, indicated in broken lines, whichmay include a forearm (not shown) suitably secured to the frame 1 by astock bolt (not shown). As is shown in detail in FIGURE 12 the breechframe comprises two plate-like members 5 and 6 of mating profile whichare adapted to behinged at their rear portions and are dapted to bebrought into abutted mating position to form a closed breeched chamberfor receiving the total action mechanism of the rifle and which mayreadily be opened to permit inspection, dismantling or replacement ofany of the component parts of the action.

The member 5 embodies a vertical elongated relatively shallow wall 7, aforwardly inclined rear wall 8 vformed with an arcuate recess 9 at itsupper end, an inclined forward wall 10 and a top wall 11. The member 5may be economically produced by brazing or welding an L-shaped plate 12to the upper portion of flat vertical plate 13 and by brazing or weldingthe forward and rear walls 8 and It) to the inner face of plate 13 tothereby define a rectangular recess for the reception of the action andmagazine. The member 5 also embodies a segmental cylindrical extension14 which is screw-threaded on its lateral surface as indicated at 15.This extension may be formed by brazing or welding a short piece of tubestock to adjacent inner surfaces of the L-shaped plate 12 and to theupper portion of the forward wall 10. As will be seen in FIGURE 12 theinterior of the extension 14 is of generally cylindrical or circularconfiguration and is formed with the longitudinal groove 16 whichprovides a guideway for the bolt mechanism in a manner to be more fullydescribed. The inner portion of this extension terminates at the ledgesor abutments 17 formed by the too flat portion of the vertical wall 10and the edges of the L-shaped top wall or plate 12.

The rectangular recess formed by the rear wall, forward wall and topwall of the bolt frame is adapted to receive the complete actionincluding the trigger and bolt mechanism for reciprocation of the lattertherein and to permit ready inspection, easy disassembly or replacementof any of the components of the action. As is illustrated, particularlyin FIGURE 12, the vertical plate 13 is formed with a cam slot 18extending from a position closely adjacent the bottom edge of such plateup to closely adjacent the upper edge of said plate. From its lower endthe slot inclines upwardly at substantially a 45 degree angle andterminates in the upper substantially vertical portion 19. The verticalplate 13 is also cut-away as shown at 20 in FIGURES 4 and 12 to form anelon gated slot in which the bolt mechanism 21 is received and in whichit is guided during its reciprocating motion in loading and firing ofthe rifle. The plate 13 is also tapped at 22 to receive the screw 23-securing the plate 24 to the frame and with an aperture 25 registeringwith aperture 26 in plate 24 for the reception of a pivot pin 27 of scarlever 28.

The breech frame is designed to embody a magazine for the reception of acartridge clip. This is accomplished by attaching a channel-shapedmember 29 to the vertical wall 13. As shown the parallel verticalflanges of memher 29 are formed with aligned apertures which registerwith apertures in vertical offset flanges 30 of a magazine casing 31.The member 29 and the magazine casing are secured to the side wall 13 ofmember 5 by means of the pin 32 the opposite ends of which may be peenedto anchor the opposite ends to the member 29 and plate 13 respectivelyand screw 33. The rear portion of the magazine casing is provided with achannel-shaped extension 31' (see FIGURE 3) which receives thespringbiased latch or magazine catch 34 adapted to engage the projection35 on the clip 33 for locking the clip in operative position in themagazine holder.

As is shown in FIGURES 3, 4, 6 and 12, a plate 135 is secured by meansof the screw 36 in the arcuate aperture in the rear wall 8. The forwardlower edge of the plate 35 is formed as a cam surface 35' for a purposeto appear.

Member 6 of the breech frame comprises a vertical plate 39 which carriesa hinge 49 whereby the plate 6 is hingedly connected to the member 5 bymeans of a hinge pin 41. The member 6 embodies an L-shaped plate 42having an upper ledge 4-3 for mating engagement with the similar ledgeon the member 5. The member 6, similarly to member 5, is provided withan extension 44 of segmental cylindrical configuration which isscrewthreaded on its lateral surface and is attached to the member 6 bybrazing, welding or the like and with cut-out portion 45 correspondingto and registering with the cut-out portion 20 of plate 13. It will beobserved that when the member 5 and 6 are swung into mating position theextension 14 on member 5 and 44 on member 6 form a continuousscrew-threaded cylindrical extension which provides for the attachmentof barrel 2 to the breech frame in a manner subsequently to bedescribed. Extension 44 is similarly formed with a longitudinal groove16' providing a guideway for the bolt mechanism. Member 6 is providedwith an aperture 46 which, when the breech member is in assembled orclosed position registers with a similar aperture 47 in member 5 toprovide a journal mounting for the trigger mechanism 37. This member isalso formed with an aperture 48 which registers with a similar aperture49 in the channel mounting 29 of the magazine casing to provide a ductfor lubrication of the magazine. The plate 39 is cut out to provide thecam slot 50 which mates with or conforms to the cam slot 18 in member 5.As in member 5, the upper substantially vertical portion or section ofthe cam slot is closed by the vertical flange of upper L-shaped platemember 42. The plate member 39 is apertured to receive the safetylocking cam 51 which is attached to lever arm 52 positioned exteriorlyof the breech frame as shown in FIGURES 1 and 9. At its upper forwardportion the member 6 is cut away as at 53 to provide a slot for theegress of an ejected cartridge shell.

As noted previously the breach frame is adapted to I receive and housethe total action mechanism of the rifle. This mechanism generallyincludes the bolt assembly 21, the actuating lever and incorporatedtrigger mechanism 37 and the sear lever 28.

As previously noted the bolt 21 is adapted to be mounted in and tooperate within the guide channel formed by the registering cut outportions 20 and 45 of members 5 and 6 respectively. The bolt 21 is thusadapted to be longitudinally reciprocated in the upper portion of thebreech frame from advanced breech locking position to a retracted breechopen position. In moving towards the retracted position the boltextracts the shell of a fired cartridge from the chamber and ejects suchshell from the breech structure through the aperture 53.

In the loading and cocking operation the bolt is moved forwardly in theguide channel of the breech frame to feed a live cartridge from magazineclip 33 into firing position within the chamber of barrel 2.

As is shown particularly in FIGURES 9 and 12 the bolt mechanism embodieslaterally spaced elongated matching members 54 and 55 which are securedin parallel spaced operative relationship by the pin 56 which, as isshown for example, in FIGURE 6, is formed with a lateral straight faceat its front portion. As is illustrated in FIGURE 9 the members 54- and55 are of general L-shaped cross-section and each incorporate an upperthick section 54 and 55' and lower dependent vertical flanges 54 and55". As will be observed in FIGURE 9 at their interior the thick uppersections 54' and 55 are each formed with an arcuate surface and thusestablish a substantially cylindrical channel 56 for the reception ofthe firing pin biasing spring 57. At the forward portion of the bolt ahammer guide plate 58 is retained between the parallel lower verticalflanges of members 54 and 55 and is adapted to support the hammer or rimfire striking pin 59. As will be seen in FIGURE 9 the striking pin isformed with forward edge cartridge rim striker dd. At such forwardsection'of the bolt the lateral Walls of members 54 and 55 are providedwith longitudinal slots 61 and 62 respectively in which springbiasedcartridge extractor pins 63 and 64 are operatively mounted. As showneach such pin is formed at its forward end with a detent for overlyingengagement with the rim of a cartridge shell. The hammer 59 is formed atits rear portion with a depending arm 65 the lower edge 65 of which istapered for operative engagement with the sear lever in a manner to bedescribed.

At its rear end the bolt unit incorporates a lever arm 67 having aforward portion of such width as to readily nest between members 54 and55 and a rear portion 68 of reduced lateral section which is providedwith an aperture 69 for the reception of a cam pin or follower 70. It isto be observed that upper rear edge of arm 68 is of arcuate shape and aswill be seen is adapted to operatively engage the cam surface 35 duringa phase of operation of the action.

In assembling the bolt unit the hammer 59 is inserted between plates 54and 55 with its longitudinal portion abutting plate 58, the lever arm issimilarly inserted between the matching members with the aperture '71 atits forward end registering aligned apertures in members 54 and 55, thebiasing firing pin spring 57 is inserted between the members with itsforward end nesting in a receiving depression in rear arm 65 and a pin56 having a flat surface is inserted in aligned apertures in members 54and 55 with such flat surfaces abutting the rear end of the spring andthe members 54 and 55 are secured as a unit by peening or otherwisefrictionally securing the pin to the members 54 and 55. A pivot pin 73is then inserted in the lower aligned apertures to pivotally mount thelever 67 in the assembled bolt.

The above described straight line action bolt is adapted to coact in anovel manner with a simple sear and trigger mechanism to insure aneminently smooth operation with optimum power multiplication and minimalmovement of the lever.

Important aspects of the invention are the provision of a novelsimplified comopsite trigger and lever mechanism 37 associated with asimilarly simplified sear mechanism and facile dismantling of theaction,

The novel power multiplying mechanism embodies specially designedcompound lever action associated with the bolt. As shown particularly inFIGURE 12, such lever mechanism includes spaced parallel vertical plates74 and 75 of suitable gauge steel of the configuration illustrated. Theplates are integrally secured in spaced parallel relationship byattachment to a lever designated generally at 76. Such lever elementincludes an integral operating handle 77, with an integral trigger guardportion together with a rear projecting section 78 having a rear edge ofarcuate shape and a longitudinally extending portion 79. The plates maybe secured to the lever element in any suitable manner as by beingriveted, spot welded or brazed to the lever sections 78 and 79. It willbe observed, as

- vergent front wall 83 forming with the top wall a searengagingprojection 84. The trigger as shown is biased by the spring 85 the endsof which fit in recesses in trigger lever 81 and the rear wall 76 of thelever element. The curved rear wall of extension 76 is provided with aspringbiased ball detent 86 for a purpose to appear. The compositelever-trigger element is apertured at its'lower foremost edge to receivea pivot pin 86. At their upper rear end sections plate members 74 and 75are provided with registering slots 87 and 88.

The sear lever 28 comprises an elongated body portion 89 having a.narrowed rearwardly extending finger 90, a front section comprised of aflat vertical wall 91 and adjacent forwardly extending lug 92. At anintermediate portion of its length the top surface of the sear 28 isformed as a curved portion '93 terminating in th detent edge 95. The lug92 is tapped to receive the pin 27 by which it is pivotally connected tothe breech frame at the foremost portion of the lever and at a pointforwardly of the lever pivot 86. The sear lever is biased by means of aspring 96 fitting at one end in a recess in forward wall 91 and abuttingchannel member 29 at its other end.

The method of assembling the action in the breech frame will have beenappreciated from the foregoing description. The bolt 21 and bolt lever67, having been preassembled in the manner described is fitted into itsguide channel in breech frame member and the plate 24 is attached tomember 5 by means of countersunk screw 23. The upper flat portion ofplate 24 is thus interposed between the vertical flange 55 and thehammer supporting ledge 58 and serves as a lower guide plate for thebolt during reciprocation of the latter and also retains the boltlaterally in position with the frame member 5. Thereafter the sear leveris assembled by inserting the sear pin through aperture 26 and into analigned aperture in the wall 13 and is secured to such wall with thesear spring abutting the rear vertical face of channel member 29. Thecomposite lever-trigger unit is then operatively con nected with thebolt by inserting the pivot pin 86 in the aperture 47 in plate 5;swinging bolt lever portion 68 into nested position between the parallelplates 74 and 75 inserting pin 70 into slots 87 and 88 and the aperture69 at the rear end of the bolt lever whereupon the breech frame member 6is swung into mating Contact with member 5 to form a closed breechframe.

It will be observed that plates 74 and 75 of the composite lever-triggerelement are each cut away at their upper median section to formlaterally aligned slotted apertures 75 and 76' through which the safetycam 51 projects when the breech is in closed position.

As noted previously one of the features of the present invention is theprovision of a lever action rifle which may be quickly knocked downint-o a barrel assemblage and breech iframe assemblage. As has beendescribed previously the breech frame is formed with the externallyscrew threaded extensions 14 and 44 whereby a rifle barrel of a selectedlength may be quickly assembled to the breech frame. As is shown inFIGS. 3 and 12 the barrel 2 is formed closely adjacent its Ibreech endwith an integral circular collar 97 and is cut away at its inner end toform the diametric notches 98 for the reception of the cartridgeextractor deten-ts 63. A portion of the barrel between its breech endand [the collar 97 is cutaway to form a flattened section 99 forfrictional engagement with a cartridge ramp or guide 100. This ramp isformed with a flat central plate portion terminating at one end 6 in aarcuate depending lip 101 and at the other end in a cam lip 102 ofreduced width.

In assembling the barrel to the bolt frame the action is mounted inbreech frame and the latter is closed in the manner previouslydescribed. The plate is then inserted in the screw threaded extension ofthe breech (frame with the inner face of the lip 101 abutting thecontiguous edge of the extension and the cam lip projecting into thechamber of the breech adjacent the top of the magazine 31 as is shownfor example in FIGURES 3 and 4. Suitable means are provided to firmlysecure the barrel to the breech frame. In (the preferred embodiment suchmeans comprises a knurled coupling nipple 103 which is internally screwthreaded as at 104 for a portion of its'length and is formed with aninternal collar or ledge 105 adapted to engage the collar 97 on thebarrel. With this structure the barrel is rapidly and securely attachedto the breech frame by inserting the chamber end into the extension andoverlying the plate 100 and tightly screwing the coupling home.

The operation of the action of the present invention will be apparentfrom the foregoing description considered particularly with reference toFIGURES 3 to 6 illustrating the sequence of operations. Assuming thatthe rifle has been discharged and the elements of the action occupytheir respective positions as shown in FIGURE 6, when it is desired tocock the piece the lever handle 77 is manually depressed and thecombined lever-trigger unit is rotated counterclockwise about its pivot86' through an arc of approximately 30. In the initial phase of thismovement, as shown in FIGURE 3, the rear cam-shaped end of bolt leverarm moves vertically downwardly, its pin 70 then operating in thevertical upper section 19 of cam slot 18, to disengage such end from itserstwhile tight frictional locking engagement with the cam abutmentplate 35. As downward movement of lever handle continues the-camfollower pin 70 rides a sloped section of the cam slot and rapidlyretracts its pivotally connected bolt in guideway. In the initial phaseof movement the exploded cartridge shell is ejected through ejectionslot or aperture 53 by contact of its rim with front upper edge of plate24. During this bolt retraction the lower detent edge 66 of the hammer65 rides rearwardly over the upper surface of lug extension 92, thecurved median section 93 and over the rear portion of scar lever 28 to aposition shown in FIGURE 3, compressing sear biasing spring 96.

As is shown in FIGURE 4, as the lever handle is moved upwardly thelever-trigger element is rotated clockwise about its pivot 86' and thecam follower pin 70 riding upwardly in the associated cam slot urgeslever 68 and its pivotally connected bolt 21 forwardly toward breechclosing position. During this movement the depending arm 65 of thehammer moves forwardly above the upper surface of sear lever 28 and searstop pin 28' until it engages detent 95 of :the sear. Continued forwardmovement of the bolt under the urge of the upwardly moving levercompresses spring 57 thereby spring loading the hammer as is shown inFIGURE 5. During the latter phase of forward cocking movement of thebolt the forward end of the bolt ledge plate 58 engages a cartridge 106in the upper end of magazine clip 33' and urges such cartridge over thecartridge ramp surface 102 for guidance into the chamber of the barrel.As the upward movement of the lever is terminating, as is illustrated inFIGURES 3 and 5, the cam follower pin 70 is rammed into the verticalsection of the cam slot causing the cam shaped rear edge of lever 63 toride up the cam surface 35' of abutment lug 35 to give a powerful thrustto the bolt firmly seating the cartridge in the chamber of the barrel.The bolt arm 68 is held in this tight frictional contact with lug 35 bythe locking action of the spring pressed ball detent 86 fitting in anadjacent depression 81 in the rear wall 8 of bolt frame number 5.

During the described cocking action, as is shown particularly in FIGURE5, the upper forward end 84 of the trigger 81 moves upwardly and whenthe handle 77 is in its nested position against the stock it occupies aposition slightly vertically displaced above the rear curved end of thesear lever and is biased in this position by the spring 85. Suchdisplacement is established by the abutting engagement of the lower endof front wall 83 of the trigger with the lower edge of the inclined rearedge of plate 79.

Simple and effective means are provided to lock the cocked piece and tounlock the action for firing. As will be seen in FIGURES 1, and 12 themember 6 of the receiver is apertured at a position above and closelyadjacent the trigger finger 80 and is adapted to receive the safety lug51 for rotation. As noted previously the log is fixed to a safety lever52 having a lateral knurled projection at its upper end for convenientengage-ment by the thumb of the operator. The lug 51 is cut away to forman outer semi-cylindrical segment having a flat portion or face 51 andan inner smaller segment 51". When the lever 52 is on F or firingposition shown in FIG- URE l the face or surface 51' is in a horizontalposition and as is shown in FIGURE 6 is spaced sufficiently below searlever 26 to permit depression of the rear end of the sear by the trigger84 o actuate the hammer striker. When such lever is moved to S or safetyposition the lug is rotated and the face occupies a vertical positionsuch that the edge of the face 51 is closely spaced to or abuts thebottom of surface of the sear lever, as shown in FIGURE 8 preventing itsdepression by the trigger. In such safe position of lever 52 the arcuatesurface of lug segment 51" underlies the rear arcuate edge of plateaperture 75' of the composite lever-trigger element and serves to lockthe lever in the receiver and prevent operation of the lever handle,

When the lever 52 is moved to fire position and the rifle is dischargedthe elements of the action are in the position shown in FIGURE 6 and therifle may be loaded and cocked by repeating the series of operationspreviously described.

It is apparent that the apparatus of the invention is extremely simpleand presents the major advantages of ready accessibility of the elementsof the action merely by removing the barrel 2 and opening the receiverin the manner described. It will be seen that the elements of the actionmay be rendered accessible for inspection, lubrication and replacementby swinging the member 6 about its hinge connection and removing the camfollower pin 70 and then removing the composite levertrigger element.This exposes the sear lever 28, bolt 21 and the cam lug lockingmechanism for purposes of lubrication determination of the degree ofwear of the units and the like.

A particular advantage of the invention is the degree of powermultiplication achieved by the action insuring smooth operation withminimum physical effort on the part of the operator for cocking thepiece. The composite lever trigger element is pivoted at its foremostportion thus establishing a long lever arm; this combined with contourand position of the cam slot and the long rear lever arm or the searenables complete operation of the piece with but substantially 30movement of lever handle 77. The special construction of the breechframe -or receiver permits ready knock down of the piece into :a barrelassembly and receiver assembly facilitating transportation and storageas Well as utilization of barrels of different length.

A further important feature of the invention is the novel dimensionalcharacteristics of the receiver insuring optimum compactness coupledwith extreme simplicity and optimum effectiveness of the action. In thisregard it is to be noted that the depth of the breech frame of thepresent invention, i.e. the distance from the top of the breech frame tothe lever pivot 86' is of the order of 2 inches as compared to a breechdepth of the order of 3.25 inches in conventional lever action rifles.Furthermore the action of the present invention is characterized by 8short operative bolt travel distance which is of the order of 1.5 inchesas compared to about 3.25 inches in conventional lever action rifles.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been described it isto be understood that this is given didactically to illustrate theunderlying principles involved and not as limiting the useful scope ofthe invention short of such limitations as are clearly imposed by theappended claims.

What is claimed is:

i. A firearm comprising a breech frame formed with a cartridge chamberat its upper forward portion, a bolt reciprocable in the frame foropening and closing the chamber, a straight bolt driving lever pivotedto the bolt at one end, a cam slot formed in the frame, means to movethe rear end of said lever in the slot to effect reciprocation of thebolt, said means including a combined lever-trigger element pivotallymounted on the forward lower portion of the frame, said elementembodying a lever arm and vertical spaced plates secured to the lever,said plates being formed with ali ned slots at their rear upperportions, the rear portion of said bolt driving lever being receivedbetween said spaced plates and a cam follower pin projecting through therear end portion of the bolt driving lever and operatively engaging thesaid cam slot of the frame and the said aligned slots of thelever-trigger element whereby elevation and depression of thelevertrigger element about its pivot reciprocates the bolt in a straightline path.

2. A firearm according to claim 1 in which angular displacement of thelever-trigger element of substantially 30 effects total operative travelof the bolt.

3. A firearm according to claim 1 in which a spring biased sear lever ispivotally mounted on the frame forwardly of the lever mounting of thelever-trigger element and is formed with a rearwardly extending,elongated arm received between said spaced plates for operativeengagement with a spring biased trigger pivotally mounted between saidspaced plates.

4. A firearm comprising a breech frame provided with a cartridge chamberat its upper forward portion, a bolt reciprocably movable on the framefor opening and closing the chamber and upwardly and forwardly extendingcam slots formed in the rear portion of the frame, a straight boltactuating lever pivoted to the bolt at one end and apertured at itsother end for the reception of an operating pin a lever trigger elementpivotally mounted at its foremost portion on the frame, said levertrigger element embodying an operating handle, an intermediate triggerguard and spaced parallel vertical plates fixedly secured to the lever,said plates being of generally triangular shape with their apexes attheir foremost portions, aligned slots formed in the rear upper portionsof the plates, a spring biased trigger pivotally mounted between theplates, said spaced plates defining a channel in which the rear portionof the sear lever is vertically operable and the rear portion of thebolt lever is received; a cam follower pin mounted in the bolt lever andadapted for sliding engagement with the cam slot of the breech frame andthe slots of the lever-trigger unit whereby vertical displacement of thelever-trigger element reciprocates the bolt, a sear lever pivotallymounted on the frame below and closely adjacent the bolt for verticalpivotal action within the frame, means operatively interconnecting thelever-trigger element and the bolt lever for reciprocating the bolt.

5. A firearm according to claim 4 in which the frame member is providedwith a manually operable locking lug mounted for rotation in one sidewall and adapted to be positioned closely subjacent the rear portion ofthe sear lever, said lug being cut away at its forward portion adjacentthe inner face of the said side wall to form a cylindrical segmentsomewhat greater than and with an integral adjoining cylindrical segmentof substantially 180 and providing a flat diametric surface, and theparallel plate remote from said side wall is formed at its upper medianportion with a substantially vertical slot and the parallel platecontiguous said side Wall is formed with a slot aligned with the slot inthe first parallel plate, said latter slot being formed with an arcuateportion whereby on rotation of the lug to a limiting point in onedirection the said flat surface assumes a position parallel to andspaced below the lower surface of the overlying sear lever to permitdepression of said lever and on rotation in the opposite direction to alimiting point the said flat surface assumes a position normal to thelower surface of the sear lever to prevent depression of said searlever.

6. A lever-trigger composite unit for a straight sliding bolt action,lever-operated rifle comprising, a lever provided with a pivot at itsforemost portion and formed with an integral rear handle extension andan intermediate integral trigger guard, a pair of spaced upstandingplates formed with a lower straight portion and generally arcuateportion secured to the lever, a spring biased trigger pivotally mountedbetween the plates, lever locking sur- 10 faces at the upper median ofsaid plates and a sear lever receiving slot defined by said plates.

7. A firearm according to claim 6 in which the spaced plates at theirrear upper portions are formed with aligned slots adapted for operativeengagement with a sliding bolt lever arm.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 619,132 2/1899Browning.

833,898 10/1906 Risley 4217 864,940 9/ 1907 Whittier 4221 2,776,5131/1957 Neal 4216 2,961,791 11/1960 Morris 4216 3,153,295 10/1964 Allyn4275 3,163,952 1/1965 Into 42--75 BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, PrimaryExaminer.

1. A FIREARM COMPRISING A BREECH FRAME FORMED WITH A CARTRIDGE CHAMBERAT ITS UPPER FORWARD PORTION, A BOLT RECIPROCABLE IN THE FRAME FOROPENING AND CLOSING THE CHAMBER, A STRAIGHT BOLT HAVING LEVER PIVOTED TOTHE BOLT AT ONE END, A CAM SLOT FORMED IN THE FRAME, MEANS TO MOVE THEREAR END OF SAID LEVER IN THE SLOTS TO EFFECT RECIPROCATION OF THE BOLT,SAID MEANS INCLUDING A COMBINED LEVER-TRIGGER ELEMENT PIVOTALLY MOUNTEDON THE FORWARD LOWER PORTION OF THE FRAME, SAID ELEMENT EMBODYING ALEVER ARM AND VERTICAL SPACED PLATES SECURED TO THE LEVER, SAID PLATESBEING FORMED WITH ALIGNED SLOTS AT THEIR REAR UPPER PORTIONS, THE REARPORTION OF SAID BOLT DRIVING LEVER BEING RECEIVED BETWEEN SAID SPACEDPLATES AND A CAM FOLLOWED PIN PROJECTING THROUGH THE REAR END PORTION OFTHE BOLT DRIVING LEVER AND OPERATIVELY ENGAGING THE SAID CAM SLOT OF THEFRAME AND THE SAID ALIGNED SLOTS OF THE LEVER-TRIGGER ELEMENT WHEREBYELEVATION AND DEPRESSION OF THE LEVERTRIGGER ELEMENT ABOUT ITS PIVOTRECIPROCATES THE BOLT IN A STRAIGHT LINE PATH.